


Darcy is Who? What? How Did This Happen?!?

by Illusinia



Series: More Than She Seems [9]
Category: The Avengers (2012), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Adoption, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-03
Updated: 2013-05-26
Packaged: 2017-11-20 03:49:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/580994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Illusinia/pseuds/Illusinia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darcy finds out who her biological family is....</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. News Time

Coulson felt a little uneasy as he looked at Darcy from the other end of the conference table. Normally he wouldn't care about what he was going to do, but after the little stunt she pulled with Fury, it seemed prudent to maintain a healthy wariness when dealing with the brunette lab assistant. Well, now she was more a member of the engineering staff. The paperwork had just gone through that morning to hire her on under Stark's engineering division par his request. Apparently, her skills with electricity were sufficient to draw attention.

 

Assuming she didn't quit on the spot after he gave her the envelope in his hands.

 

Natasha cleared her throat beside him, drawing his attention back to the room at large and the group gathered there-in. All of the Avengers plus Darcy, Jane, and an uneasy Loki stared back at him. Her high school friend, Dani, had been ordered to show as well but between her research and her marked dislike of him, it was unknown if she would actually come. Still, Darcy was her friend so it was hopeful that she would appear.

 

Regardless, he had to get this meeting over with, in part because the Avengers were getting antsy and in part because he frankly wanted to get this off his plate. Fury hadn't wanted to tell the girl any of this, but Coulson had continually felt that she should know and, after the chaos of the last revelation that was made to her, he felt the sooner this was done the better. Otherwise there was the risk she'd find out on her own, and that could only end in disaster.

 

“Thank you all for coming today,” opened Coulson. “As many of you know, this meeting pertains primarily to Miss Lewis, but I asked all of you here to support her should she need it.” The various looks of 'why' and 'we care because...?' weren't a surprise. “I'm aware how close all of you have become to Miss Lewis. For those of you who try to deny that, let me remind you that all of you _are_ under almost constant surveillance when in Headquarters or at the Mansion.”

 

The looks disappeared rapidly, being replaced with looks of worry or sheepishness. Coulson offered a chilly 'I have you now' smile before turning to face Darcy again and finding his tongue more than a little tied. Really, how does someone deliver news like this? He cleared his throat uneasily. “Miss Lewis, I'm afraid I have some news that will perhaps be a bit shocking to yo-”

 

“If you're trying to tell me I'm adopted, I know,” cut in Darcy mildly. “I've known since I was ten, so you can stop looking constipated. Compassion looks a bit disturbing on you, Coulson.”

 

Coulson chuckled dryly, but couldn't help note the similarities in humor or sarcasm. It wasn't hard to believe the test results in his hand when they were so much the same. “Well, I'll stop attempting to be gentle then and simply give you this.” He waved the envelope a little before sliding it across the table to Darcy.

 

It stopped in front of her and she just stared at it. “I don't want to know who I'm related to.”

 

“How do you know it's a DNA test?” asked Coulson mildly. “It could contain any other piece of information.” Of course, the envelop really did contain the results of the S.H.I.E.L.D. run DNA test, but he wasn't going to let her know she was right without her looking at the results first. Though her reaction was unpredictable, resistance to know was one of the possible outcomes.

 

She gave him a 'you're bullshit won't fly with me' look, even as she turned the envelop around on the table several times. “I don't really care where I come from, Coulson. My biological mom gave me up for whatever reason and it was her choice. I don't see how knowing who she is will make any difference.”

 

“You're mother isn't listed in there, Miss Lewis,” explained Coulson with a faint smile. “It turns out you happen to have relations within S.H.I.E.L.D. itself.”

 

Both of Stark's eyebrows flew up. “She's related to a S.H.I.E.L.D. croon?”

 

“Jack-booted thug is probably more like it,” muttered Jane, even as she lay a reassuring hand on Darcy's shoulder. On Darcy's other side, Loki cocked his head at her curiously. He made no move to touch her.

 

Thor was giving his brother a look of disapproval, even as he spoke to Darcy. “Lady Darcy, perhaps understanding to whom you are related would not be so bad?”

 

Loki snorted but said nothing. Darcy gave him a worried look, which he responded to with a tight, grim smile.

 

“You okay Loki?” asked Darcy, brow furrowed. Her eyes told him that she knew this was a touchy subject for him still, unlike her own callus views.

 

“Fine,” assured Loki, even as he nodded at the envelop. “Do you wish to know now, Darcy? For a short period of time, you did.”

 

Darcy sighed and shrugged. “I was curious for a bit. But after the shit hit the fan with the Finches, I kinda stopped caring.”

 

“Who are the Finches?” asked Clint with a raised eyebrow. “You're last name is Lewis.”

 

She shot him a 'no shit Sherlock' look and sighed. “The Finches are my adopted parents, but I stopped talking to them after that mess with Dani apparently fake-dieing in the chem lab.” Darcy considered something for a second before continuing. “They didn't like my decision to drop out of bioengineering, kept insisting that Dani would have wanted me to continue and to 'think about what a great career it was' and 'how I was already on my way to being a lead in the field, just after Tony Stark'. Oh, and my favorite: 'if you play your cards right, maybe you could work with Stark some day'. Course, that one came true, but it was still the way they went about it with no consideration for _why_ I was switching majors that made me break away from them.”

 

Tony scoffed some and shook his head. “Sound like a pair of real winners to me. I mean, yeah, I wouldn't be happy if it was my kid pursuing Political Science instead of engineering if they had a knack for it, but your reasoning wasn't really flawed.”

 

Steve shot Tony a raised eyebrow, causing the billionaire to shrug. “Hey, I know how bad losing someone you care about can be. It fucks with your head and your heart, so I like to think I'd show at least _some_ compassion or understanding. Though, I'd probably encourage the kid to take time off school rather than drop out of the major completely.”

 

“I considered that,” admitted Darcy. “But, really, it was partially frustration that drove me too. Dani shouldn't have been in that class to begin with. It was well below her level of understanding and she was only in it because the school wouldn't let her test out despite recruiting her _because_ she was considered a protege in her field. That's part of the reason I chose poli sci: it would put me in a position where I could help pass legislation to make sure an accident like Dani's didn't happen again.”

 

“Which is why I told Fury the only way I'd come work for S.H.I.E.L.D. was if he told you I was okay,” pointed out Danya from the doorway. She looked a little rushed, but otherwise completely put together. Steve stood immediately and offered her his chair, which she pushed him back into, then promptly dropped into his lap amid his stuttering objections.

 

Natasha shot her a raised eyebrow. “I would have thought you'd be locked away in your lab today, Danya. What are you doing here?”

 

Danya grinned at Natasha and shrugged. “Coulson said something about a 'mandatory meeting'. Figured I'd show on the off-chance it was actually important.” The sarcasm was heavy in her words. “What are you doing here?”

 

“Same as you,” replied Natasha with a shrug.

 

Tony looked more than a little surprised, turning towards the Dani with a raised eyebrow. “You know Natasha?”

 

“They're cousins,” supplied Darcy and Loki simultaneously. They'd managed to actually confirm that Natasha Romanov was the same cousin Natasha that they'd both met countless times. It hadn't been that surprising really, but they hadn't wanted to assume it was the same person when Natasha hadn't acknowledged either of them as her cousin's friends. Probably because she had been no more sure than they were.

 

“Yep,” confirmed Danya with a shrug as she turned towards Darcy, ignoring everyone else. “So, what's Coulson calling us all together for _this_ time.”

 

Darcy took a moment to admire the various shocked and awed looks that pretty much everyone in the room, save Coulson, was giving Danya before she shrugged and addressed her friend's question. “Apparently he just wanted to tell me I'm adopted.”

 

“So, repetitious information,” sighed Danya, her head coming back to lean on the blushing Steve's shoulder as if it were the chair back. “Figures.”

 

Coulson just raised an eyebrow in response, unsurprised by the underlying irritation which surprised everyone else except Natasha, Darcy, Loki, and Steve. Danya had informed them how much she loathed Coulson. Repeatedly. “I also wanted to present Miss Lewis with the results of a DNA test we ran on her when she came into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s employment.”

 

Danya's head shot up, eyes narrowing at Coulson. “And you ran this DNA test, how? Because, last I checked, I'm responsible for running all DNA tests in addition to my research. And I'd definitely remember running Darcy's DNA.”

 

“Except Darcy is using a different surname now,” pointed out Loki mildly. “There is a good possibility that you ran the DNA test without realizing you had.”

 

Danya waved away the suggestion easily. “No, Darcy changed her last name when she turned 18 in rebellion. I was there and saw her do it.” A grin spread over her face. “I was also the one who drew the last name.”

 

“Drew?” questioned Tony with a raised eyebrow.

 

Darcy shrugged. “Would you believe that I chose my new last name by putting slips of paper in a hat with all the most common last names on them and drew one at random?”

 

“Actually, yeah, I would,” admitted Tony with a grin. “Easiest way.”

 

“Yep,” agreed Darcy with a grin.

 

Coulson cleared his throat. “Miss Lewis, could you please open the envelop?”

 

Darcy sighed and returned her gaze to Coulson. “Why? So I can know the names of a bunch of people who I have no connection with? Please, Jane, Pepper, Loki, Dani, and the Avengers are practically family to me. Why do I need to know any more?”

 

“I think the results may surprise you,” suggested Coulson calmly.

 

She just laughed. “Yeah, now I _really_ don't want to know.”

 

Beside her, Loki reached out and picked up the envelop, examining it before giving Darcy a raised eyebrow. She nodded at him and he flipped open the top, sliding out and examining the paper inside. Both of his eyebrows shot up. “Darcy, I do believe you will want to see this.”

 

Danya raised an eyebrow and stood, moving to read the paper over Loki's shoulder. Her jaw dropped. “Seriously? Darce, you've got to see this.”

 

Finally, with a sigh, Darcy held out her hand for the paper. Calmly, Loki passed the letter to her and she flipped it open. Not a moment passed before she shrugged and dropped the paper with a sigh, muttering something about the rule of 'six degrees of separation' and standing. “Whatever, as I said, it doesn't matter what the results say. Look, I'm done with this. Coulson, if you have a problem with that, shove it. I have stuff to do.”

 

With that, she walked calmly from the room, waving at everyone over her shoulder. Loki and Danya exchanged concerned looks, but neither moved. Everyone was staring at them both expectantly, and they just stared right back.

 

“Uh, are either of you going after her?” asked Clint uneasily.

 

Danya snorted. “No. It's a bad idea to bother Darcy when she's pissed.”

 

“She will come to us when ready,” assured Loki calmly.

 

From beside Loki, Tony snatched the paper off the table. “Who's she related to anyway?”

 

Neither Loki or Danya tried to stop him as he looked over the piece of paper, but they did both smirk as his jaw practically hit the floor. “What the hell?!?”

 

Jane stood from her seat, coming around to peer over his shoulder. Her own shocked gasp filled the room. “I don't believe this. There has to be a mistake.”

 

Clint snorted and motioned for the paper. “It can't be _that_ surprising.”

 

When neither Jane nor Tony moved, apparently too shocked to respond, Danya spoke up. “Apparently, Darcy is related to both Tony and Jane, Tony paternally and Jane through a cousin.”

 

The room fell silent for a moment before Steve cleared his throat uneasily. “How-?”

 

“I'd guess she's Tony's due to a one-night stand and that Jane's cousin was the one Tony slept with,” offered Danya mildly. “At least, that's the only way I can think of that she'd be related to both of them. Well, unless Tony's dad had a tendency to pick up random wome-”

 

“Hell no!” shouted Tony. “My dad was _completely_ devoted to Mom. He wouldn't have cheated on her.”

 

Coulson nodded. “The results don't refute that. According to the degree of relation, Miss Romanov's assessment of the results would be correct.”

 

Danya sneered at Coulson and said something rude along with a comment about Romanov _not_ being her last name thank-you-very-much but no one except Coulson was really paying any attention to her any more. Especially not Tony and Jane who were still staring at the results in shock.

 

Jane was the first to speak, though it was slowly as if she was trying to piece everything together. “I remember there was a cousin of mine who died when I was very young. I asked about it once, and my mother wouldn't say anything. It was on her death certificate though, which was public record. The slip said 'Exsanguination due to child birth'. I didn't have another cousin though, so I always thought the baby died with her.”

 

“I can't believe I have a daughter,” muttered Tony as he finally moved, dropping into a chair heavily. “Especially one I never knew about.”

 

“I can't believe I had a cousin and my Aunt and Uncle just gave her away,” replied Jane.

 

Coulson looked at both individuals for a moment, feeling bad that such information had to be delivered so harshly. _Perhaps though,_ he noted as Thor came to stand beside Jane and Pepper wrapped her arms around Tony, _perhaps things have turned out just right_. Darcy wasn't a stranger to either Jane or Tony and both of them were fully aware how intelligent and resourceful the iPod loving brunette was. Her reaction to the news was troubling, but expected. Hopefully though, everyone could accept this and move on. After all, he'd given them the news with the intention of providing full disclosure, so surely the universe couldn't be so messed up as to actually _punish_ anyone for this. Right? 


	2. Comfort and Vacations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I will be the first to admit that I had no clue how this was going to go until I started on it. I tried to push across Darcy's feelings as best I could, and may have failed miserably. Having very little grasp on my own emotions, its hard to write them for others. Anyway, I tired? Sadly, this is probably the best it's going to get, so I'm putting it up now. There may be one or two more pieces associated with this particular story, but I'm not sure yet. If you all want to see more, then let me know. I'll list out the two I'm considering at the bottom and let you guys decide if I develop them or not. I have two other stories from this series that I'm going to hopefully eventually get up. One will tie up a few things brought up in this chapter and the other is just supposed to be kinda funny.

Darcy nearly jumped out of her skin when a loud crash echoed from nearby, drawing her from her sleep. Lifting her head sleepily, she spotted Loki hopping around while clutching his right foot. There was a large piece of scrap metal she'd been meaning to put up laying on the floor in front of him. It had been slightly propped up before. _Huh._

 

Glancing around, she noted the disarray of her workshop. _Mental note, add 'clean workshop' to my 'things to consider doing then ignore' list_. Without even thinking about it, she grabbed her psudo-iPod and entered the note into her task list.

 

“You are awake, good.” Loki's voice drew Darcy's attention back towards him, guilt about not checking that he was okay flashing through her for all of five seconds before she remembered the 'god' part.

 

Instead, she gave him a raised eyebrow. “Yeah, now I am.” A yawn broke through her mouth for a moment, cutting her off briefly. “So what are you doing in my workshop?”

 

Loki shook his head and picked up a duffel bag she hadn't seen before. It looked oddly full. “I'm here to collect you for a 'vacation' as Dani called it.”

 

“Vacation?” asked Darcy with a furrowed brow. “Like, taking a few days out of the lab? No thanks, I'm happy here.”

 

“No,” corrected Loki as he reached out and took her hand, drawing her closer to him. One of her hands snatched up the copper-colored bracelet which had been laying on the table behind her. “We are going to visit Norway until you have sorted out your feelings concerning your heritage.”

 

Darcy snorted and shook her head, sliding the band into her pocket. Loki noticed but let the matter slide. “I don't have any _feelings_ on my 'heritage'. So Tony's my dad, big deal.”

 

There was a touch of hurt to her voice though, a tone that Dani had informed Loki matched the same one Darcy had used when she'd had a 'talk' with her parents following the whole 'lied to about being adopted repeatedly' mess when she was 10. It was also a concern that Darcy could sink into herself and completely lock everyone out, which was unacceptable as far as Loki was concerned. Dani agreed.

 

“Discovering your biological heritage is a very big deal Darcy. More so than discovering you are not from the womb of the woman you call mother,” pointed out Loki gently. He dropped onto a stool beside Darcy's own, tilting her face up to his. “Believe me, I know all too well how much the truth about such matters can hurt.”

 

“Yeah? How do you figure,” growled Darcy. “You were adopted, yeah, but you never found out who your actual parents were! _This_ is why I didn't want to know!”

 

Loki sighed heavily, rubbing his eyes gently in the process. When he'd told her the story about his own discovery, he'd left out the racial aspect of his heritage. At the time, it was still hard for him to accept that particular truth. Even now he had issues with it. “I understand far better than you could guess. When I told you my own story, I left out one key point: I am a frost giant, a race different from that of the Aesir. Worse still, I was the son of their leader, left to die in a temple for my size.” He paused to take a breath. Even now, the knowledge of his father's lies hurt. Before him, Darcy was giving him a wide-eyed look of surprise mixed with an understanding so deep it hurt. And understanding from realization, the last piece of the puzzle falling into place at last. “I am the child of a race of monsters. I _am_ a monster, according to everyone I ever knew. My parents included.”

 

Darcy snorted and pulled him close, leaning her forehead against his. A hint of tears hovered at the corners of her eyes, which locked firmly onto his. “You're not a monster. Never say that again, otherwise I will slap you. Or subject you to hours of mindless Earth television for your viewing horror. And don't think you can avoid it. I'm a genius, I will find a way to keep you there.” One of her hands stroked through his hair, softly rubbing at the back of his head. She'd hidden the substance he usually used to keep his hair back and manageable, sighting that 'hair gel will probably give you brain cancer or something'. When he'd pointed out that any illness he contracted could be cured, she'd pouted at him until he resigned himself to her request. He had to admit, having her hands in his hair was soothing. And definitely something he couldn't do if his hair was slicked back. “Secondly, I'm sorry you had to go through that. You know I know all too well how much those kinds of lies hurt.”

 

“Yes, I do,” confirmed Loki softly. “Which is why I'm concerned you may be having trouble reconciling the information you have recently gleaned concerning your familial ties.”

 

A faint huff fell from Darcy as she pulled away and turned to slide from her stool. “I was serious when I said it's not a big deal Loki. I don't really care that Tony's my dad or that Jane's my cousin. Seriously, it doesn't bother me. It's just-” She fell silent at that point, biting her lip and looking uneasy about what she wanted to say next. Without a word, she paced slightly away, as if placing some distance between her and him would allow her mind to work through this better.

 

Loki raised an eyebrow at her but did not move otherwise. He knew she was still processing this, even if she didn't want to admit it. Stubbornness was one of Darcy's major traits (most would say flaws, but he saw no flaw in being stubborn when you typically were right most of the time). When close to two minutes had passed and Darcy hadn't continued, he prompted her gently. “Just what?”

 

Sighing, Darcy spun back around to face Loki with a depressed sigh. “It's just that I don't want things to change. I don't want Tony to suddenly start acting paternal- he's not my dad. If he wanted me, then he would have taken me when I was a kid. And Jane's just as bad. I tried to talk to her three days ago, asking if she wanted to go grab a drink or something and insisting that she needed to get out of the lab. She just looked at me like she wasn't sure what to do, like I was some stranger she didn't know. _That's_ what I can't deal with.” Crossing her arms under her chest, Darcy poked at a piece of metal with her toe. “Nothing has changed. Some new information has come to light, but we all already knew each other before hand. We don't need to change our relationships just because I'm suddenly related to them by blood. Family isn't about blood, it's about who raised you.”

 

A faint ping of sadness echoed through Loki's chest. He knew how much change bothered Darcy, it always had. She was quick to embrace new ideas, new machines or theories. Science or mechanics. But when it came to her interpersonal relationships, she hated change with a burning passion. Loki wanted to blame her parent's lies, but somehow he suspected this was an inherited trait. He'd heard of the flighty nature of Tony's former relationships before Pepper and it seemed the only reason the genius was more willing to engage with his assistant had to do with her long-term presence in his life. It created a sense of permanence that Tony needed. For a brief moment, Loki wondered how different Darcy would have been had Tony raised her. The idea made him shiver with unease.

 

“Loki?” Apparently Darcy had noticed his little detour into his own head because she was looking at him with concern. “Are you alright?”

 

“Yes,” insisted Loki quickly, brushing away his speculation. “You have a very enlightened idea about family.”

 

Darcy shrugged a little and turned her head away to look at the floor. For a moment, Loki caught a flash of sadness in her eyes. A touch of longing for something. “Yeah, well, when your raised by people who aren't your biological family but still love you, definitions change.”

 

Loki nodded and came to stand next to her, careful to maintain some distance still. “Either way Darcy, discovering _who_ your biological family is can be difficult for everyone on both sides of the proverbial coin.”

 

A faint twitch of a smile touched Darcy's lip but slipped just as quickly. “It's only awkward if you acknowledge that the kid you gave up because you didn't want her is in fact your newest employee and babysitter.”

 

“What makes you think Tony didn't want you?” asked Loki with a raised eyebrow. He noticed how she kept Jane out of her comment. There's probably a reason for that, but he's determined to only deal with one aspect of the problem at a time.

 

“Because he didn't take me,” pointed out Darcy with a huff as she turned to fully face Loki. Her arms were crossed under her chest and her hip was popped in a way that she tended to stand when annoyed. “I'd think that would make his feelings on the matter pretty damn clear.”

 

Loki's brow furrowed as he stared at Darcy in confusion. Did she really not know? “Darcy, Tony wasn't aware that you even _existed_ before Agent Coulson gave you that DNA test.”

 

Darcy's stubborn stance melted completely away as she stared up at Loki in surprised awe. Her eyes were wide and her arms had fallen to her sides. “W-what?”

 

“Tony did not know he had a child at all prior to Agent Coulson's announcement,” repeated Loki with a sigh. He bent to find the handles of the duffel bag again, knowing that their trip was definitely back on. Darcy looked as if she was still attempting to process what he had said as he teleported them both out of her workshop.

 

* * *

 

 _Three days later_...

 

Loki sighed as he glanced at Darcy where she sat curled into a ball on the window seat in their room. They were staying at a snow lodge in the mountains, carefully chosen because of its remote location and the improbability that anyone would find them. Dani was in her own room across the hall from them, careful to be present but not intrusive. Loki wasn't really sure what she was doing in her room, but he wasn't going to ask either. She wasn't going to tell anyone where they were, that was all that mattered.

 

In the window seat, Darcy shifted a little before settling into a position he'd seen her maintain for close to the last three days. One of her legs was bent so her head could rest against a hand on her knee and the other was held straight out. A sketch pad lay abandoned on the floor next to her. Instead, she was staring at a photograph which she kept hiding whenever he got close. Not much had been said since their arrival.

 

A knock at the door drew Loki out of his thoughts of worry and led him to open the door into their room. Dani was standing on the other side, two folders in hand and her duffel slung over her shoulder. Loki nodded to her then stepped outside of the room, careful to shut the door behind him.

 

“Are you leaving Dani?” was the first question out of his mouth. It was a touch bitter, but he'd known it was probably coming. Dani and Darcy had been separated for years and, well they appeared unaffected, he knew better. There was a tension between them, a hint of guilt on Dani's part for not ensuring that Fury had kept his word and a touch of bitter accusation on Darcy's part that Dani hadn't even tried to contact her. Couple that with Darcy's unwillingness to talk, and it was only a matter of time before Dani left to do other things she needed to finish.

 

Dani nodded and tightened her hold on her bag. “Yeah, I found a clue about Darcy's mom while I was doing some research on her family. It's possible I can find out what happened to her. If Coulson felt the need to reopen these damn wounds, the least I can do is help make sure the injury heals this time.”

 

Loki cocked an eyebrow at her but nodded none the less and looked towards the folders. Whatever Dani was going off to do probably needed to be done. She could be intrusive sometimes and push things a little too far without meaning to, but she understood what was going on with Darcy better than Loki did all the same. “What are these folders?”

 

“Files on Dr. Foster and Stark,” explained Dani as she handed both folders to Loki. “Look, Darcy may not want to face what's going on right now, and that's fine. She didn't really want to face this when she was 10 either. It made her feel abandoned, which helped her reconnect with her adoptive parents.”

 

“What?” asked Loki with a confused furrow of his brow. “That makes no sense.”

 

Dani shrugged. “Sure it does. Her original parents didn't want her, but the Finches did. It helped her realize that, yeah, her parents hadn't handled her questions right but they love her. They still do. There was hurt on both sides of that argument, but Darcy's a bit self-centered sometimes so she doesn't always notice things like that.”

 

Loki made a face at the comment and appeared about to argue but a single look from Dani silenced him. Any argument he could make would be countered anyway. “So what do you hope to gain by researching her biological mother?”  
  


“I want to confirm she's dead before I say anything to Darcy for one thing,” replied Dani with a heavy sigh. “Everything I've seen suggests she died in child birth like Jane said but with the way our lives have gone, who knows?”

 

“Where do you need to go?” asked Loki as he flipped open one of the folders and was met with a photo of Tony Stark as a child. It was a report discussing his child protege status.

 

“Tuscan, Arizona,” replied Dani as she shifted the duffel a little. “I'm gonna fly there then drive to Colorado for a few days to see my parents.”

 

“You have spoken with them, then?” queried Loki in concern. He'd known Dani was discussing a visit to her childhood home, but didn't know if she was going to go through with it.

 

Dani nodded. “Yeah, I have some questions for them.”

 

“Questions?” asked Loki with a raised brow. “That sounds ominous.”

 

For a moment, Dani looked uncertain then she carefully dropped her voice a little. “Something about this whole S.H.I.E.L.D. thing isn't right. Fury should have kicked my ass out after the stunt I pulled at that fundraiser, but he didn't. Instead, he negotiated to keep me on at S.H.I.E.L.D. It's not like him.”

 

“And you suspect your parents hold the key,” whispered Loki with a nod. “Why do you believe that though?”

 

Dani looked away from Loki, her eyes focusing on a vase near the end of the hallway. “Part of why I was able to help Darcy through her shit is that I understood some of how she felt. It was something I never discussed with her or my parents, opting to remain in the dark rather than face a potentially unpleasant reality.”

 

Both of Loki's eyebrows shot up. “You would prefer a lie to the truth? That has never been your way.”

 

“With this it always was,” sighed Dani. “Something about me has never been right, nor has my family situation ever felt exactly right. I never wanted to find out why before, just wanting to ignore everything weird and pretend my life was normal.”

 

Loki nodded slowly. “But now you feel you must ask.”

 

“Yeah,” confirmed Dani with a nod. “Look, Loki, I'll be in contact no matter what happens. If Darcy needs me, just give me a call and I'll be back. I have enough back-pay saved to cross the world several times over at this point.”

 

“Understood,” agreed Loki. “Be careful Dani.”

 

“I will,” assured Dani. “Get Darcy out of this funk. At this point, I think you're the only one who has a chance at that. I'll call you as soon as I know anything about her mom.”

 

Loki nodded and watched as Dani spun around and headed towards the stairs. For a moment, Loki felt fear for his second friend but allowed it to pass. Whatever Dani was doing, she needed to do and the female scientist had been standing alone for long enough that he doubted anything would push her over the edge right now.

 

Re-entering the room, Loki made his way over to where Darcy still sat in the window sill. Unmoving. His heart broke a little at the sight, knowing he couldn't take his friend's pain away. Silently, he sat beside her outstretched leg and moved to take the hand not resting beneath her head. She allowed him to do so, turning her head to look at him. Tears hovered at the corners of her eyes.

 

“Darcy...” murmured Loki as his other hand reached towards her cheek. She allowed him to cup it and then went one step further and climbed into his lap. Her head tucked under his chin and her free arm slipped around his waist as she rested against him. “Darcy, tell me how I can help you.”

 

“You can't,” murmured Darcy, her head shifting to press into the crook between his shoulder and his neck. “I don't know what I'm doing myself.”

 

Loki nodded and reached for one of the folders Dani had give him. He'd set both on the ground before taking his seat beside her. Without a word, he passed the folder to Darcy and let her flip it open. He felt her brow furrow as she looked at the folder.

 

“I don't get it,” she whispered. “Why would I want to see a folder about Stark?”

 

His lips brushed her forehead softly. “Dani dropped them off just now. She wanted you to have them in case you were curious.”

 

“Of course she did,” muttered Darcy with a touch of bitterness. “I swear she's older than 24. Girl has way too much worldly understanding to be my age.”

 

Loki chuckled a little and held her closer. “Dani is merely observant, you know that.”

 

“Yeah,” sighed Darcy, fingers idly flipping through the folder. “I don't want things to change Loki. I _liked_ things the way they were. Tony was already like a surrogate dad to me anyway and Jane was like the awesome big sister I never had. Why did Coulson have to do this? I thought he at least _tolerated_ me.”

 

Gently, Loki allowed one hand to begin stroking her back as he spoke. “I believe Agent Coulson was doing what he thought wise at the time. He does respect you Darcy, that is why he wished to not lie to you. He wanted you to know the truth and never considered that you may have already faced this matter once before and put it to rest.”

 

Darcy nodded, pausing on a page that talked a bit about Tony as a person. It wasn't a newspaper article or an interview, but rather a S.H.I.E.L.D. observation log and list of personal information. The information itself wasn't particularly personal, but Loki could sense the connection that Darcy was making with the information none the less. Her fingers drifted over the page idly, running beneath certain comments.

 

After a moment, she shut the file with a sigh and shook her head. “He sounds like me.”

 

It was a quiet admission, but one Loki was relieved to hear. “Yes, he does. You and Tony are very much alike.”

 

“I don't like the idea of things changing,” repeated Darcy weakly. She sounded almost desperate to maintain her view, even if her voice was loosing its conviction. “He didn't want me before.”

 

Loki's fingers continued to slide gently over her back. “He was unaware of your existence. Darcy, knowing that you are unwanted is hard to face. Harder than knowing you were a secret no one knew about. Believe me when I say this Darcy: my own father did not want me. He left me to die in a frozen temple on Jotenheim. Your father simply never knew that you existed, but now has a chance to rectify that situation. To learn who you are. Tony simply wants to know his daughter, to be a father _now_ when he was forbidden unknowingly from being one before.”

 

For a moment, Darcy said nothing as her fingers stroked the front of the file. “You think Tony really didn't know about me?”

 

“His shock upon learning he had a daughter was genuine,” confirmed Loki softly.

 

Darcy lifted her head to look at Loki, her eyes shining a little. “Well, maybe I can give him a chance then. _Maybe_.”

 

“Maybe is a good answer,” assured Loki with a soft smile, his forehead coming to lean against her own.

 

Darcy smiled in return, then leaned forward to kiss him slowly. When they broke away, she was frowning a little. “This doesn't mean we have to go back yet, right?”

 

Loki shook his head, one of his hands coming up to cup the back of hers. “We can stay for as long as you would like.”

 

“Good,” muttered Darcy as she shifted to straddle his hips. “'Cause I could use a few days with you and Dani.”

 

He kissed her again softly, slowly drawing her flush against him. “Unfortunately, you will have to deal with me alone. Dani had other things she needed to accomplish.”

 

“She went to speak with her parents.” It was a statement, knowing.

 

“Yes,” whispered back Loki, brow furrowed a little in curiosity. “How did you know?”

 

Darcy shrugged. “Something has always been a little off between her and her parents. She never seemed like she wanted to talk about it though, and I didn't intrude.”

 

Loki sighed heavily and pressed their foreheads together. “You both continue to amaze me.”

 

“Good,” muttered Darcy as she kissed him again, licking his bottom lip a little as she did. “Last thing we want is to bore you. Now, bed. I've been ignoring you the last few days and intend to make up for it.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, two pieces under consideration: Pepper goes to talk with the Finches and Pepper arranges for a trip to an amusement park as bonding experience. Alternatively, I might also add one about Tony talking Darcy into going to visit with the Finches....and him tagging along for moral support. Anyway, if anyone is interested in any of those, let me know. I won't promise any kind of an expedient posting though due to work and thesis.


	3. Fury's Files Are Better Than Starks (For Once)

Silence echoed through the room, hanging heavily between its only two occupants. A sip or click would cut loudly through the air every once in a while, but would never be followed by vocal sound. Both Jane and Tony seemed comfortable with the silence as they sat across from each other. Their focus was on their coffee, but their minds were elsewhere.

 

Several people had started to enter the break room multiple times over the last hour and all had backed out just as quickly. Word over what had transpired in the conference room not a week ago concerning Darcy's apparent family spread like wildfire and, following the series of explosions which had echoed up from the science department for the first few days as Darcy attempted to do _something_ , everyone had decided giving all involved parties a wide breadth was best.

 

Days earlier, Danya and Loki had disappeared with Darcy to parts unknown, which had been a relief to everyone _but_ Jane and Tony. In the time since Coulson's revelation, both Jane and Tony had attempted to combined their knowledge of the quirky former-intern and found they knew almost nothing about her. Well, in context. They knew she had a love of pop-tarts and music, that her favorite color was green, and she was practically addicted to Apple products. Well, the last one was assumed given her fondness for both her iPod and Mac laptop. At least, they _thought_ the products were made by Apple. For all they really knew, the computer and iPod were toys Darcy had built herself.

 

Supposition aside, neither individual knew much beyond superficial details about Darcy. They didn't even really know all of those either. Neither one knew anything about her preferences for food beyond pop-tarts nor if she had any allergies, what her favorite type of music was, or even what religion she was, if any. None of that was really important, but Tony and Jane felt guilty about not knowing those details. Especially given the amount of time they'd spent with Darcy. Yeah, Tony had spent a little less time with her than Jane, but that really didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. It was the _fact_ that neither one of them could even pretend to know any basic information about Darcy, that a supervillian who had attempted to _enslave the Earth_ knew that information but the people Darcy had worked with closely didn't, that really bothered them. Sure, Loki had spent _four years_ with Darcy, but he wasn't her family. Family was supposed to know this stuff.

 

Worse, perhaps, was the fact that the two individuals who actually knew the information Jane and Tony wanted had disappeared with Darcy days ago. Even Steve didn't know (or wouldn't tell them) where the mischief-making trio had gone.

 

Tony had tried to find Darcy's foster family, as had Jane, but neither could remember what her previous last name had been and their access to the information was blocked by S.H.I.E.L.D., who had made Darcy's information disappear. Not that either one knew what they would say if they could find Darcy's

former family. It didn't sound like they really wanted to talk with either adult, based on what Darcy had said. Sure, neither one sounded _bad_ but they did sound a bit stuck-up. And, yeah, rubbing in their faces the fact that Darcy had achieved more in her life than either adult had thought she could following her own path sounded awesome, but it had to be Darcy's choice to do that. Well, Tony was all for doing that regardless of the consequences, but Jane and Pepper had put a stop to that immediately. Okay, Pepper had put a stop to it and Jane had supported Pepper. Either way, Tony wasn't allowed to contact the family even if they could find them. Not without Darcy.

 

However, with Darcy and her two closest friends gone, Natasha having disappeared on a mission with Clint, and Steve offering absolutely _no help whatsoever_ , Tony and Jane were at a dead-end. Thus, the mopy coffee break and general air that kept everyone at a distance. This was how Phil Coulson found them both, looking lost and more than a little depressed over the whole matter. Even Thor wasn't attached to Jane at the moment.

 

Sighing, he entered the room and moved to the coffee maker, careful to keep the stack of papers he was carrying coffee-stain free. From the corner of his eye, he monitored both of the room's inhabitants. What he was about to do wasn't technically allowed, though letting the two suffer was out of the question, too. Neither Stark nor Foster had gotten any real work done in the last week, having become obsessed with finding out everything they could about Darcy.

 

He knew for a fact that Fury had passed a copy of his files on Stark and Foster to someone recently, but he hadn't been inclined to share exactly who had requested the information. Coulson was willing to bet it was either Loki or Danya though, probably Danya given Fury didn't fully trust Loki yet. And Danya was Fury's favorite. Thus, either Darcy was doing the same thing or someone else was trying to get her to. Alternatively, Danya or Loki might just be curious too, though he suspected Loki knew more than he wanted to about Jane thanks to Thor.

 

Dismissing all concerns over why Fury was pulling and distributing Foster's and Stark's personnel files, Coulson grabbed his coffee and strolled over to where the aforementioned genius' were moping with his own files safely in hand. Neither one looked up as he approached, nor when he came to stand by their table. No acknowledgment, not even a snarky comment from Stark. He was almost disappointed that this variation of the insane billionaire ex-playboy was going to shortly disappear. Then again, perhaps the knowledge that his antics had gained him offspring would have some kind of weird counter-effect on his personality.

 

“You two look dower,” commented Coulson mildly as he looked between Jane and Tony.

 

Jane groaned and lifted her head. “What is it Coulson?”

 

Coulson tsked softly. “Now, is that any way to great someone here to help you?”

 

Tony looked up as well, examining Coulson with a critical eye. “Yeah? What's the catch? Better question, how can you help us? Even my people couldn't get me much information.”

 

A smirk spread across Coulson's face and he shifted the folders in his hand. “Simple. A) S.H.I.E.L.D. has copied and destroyed most available information on Miss Lewis short of her facebook page, twitter account, and other minor social network systems she chooses to indulge in, mainly because she gives away very little information about herself on those pages. More so, she has them for social monitoring purposes, which is perfectly acceptable by S.H.I.E.L.D. standards.” Tony snorted and muttered something sarcastic that sounded a lot like 'it would be', but Coulson ignored him. “B) the catch is that both of you need to return to work. Miss Lewis will return soon and you can both ask her all the questions you want then. But, until that happens, hopefully this will assuage your need to invade her privacy.”

 

With that, Coulson dropped both of the folders he was holding on the table, then took a seat between Tony and Jane. Both just stared blankly at the folders for a moment, before Jane reached out and slid one towards her. Flipping it open, an image of a very young, grinning Darcy stared back at her.

 

“These files are on Darcy?” asked Jane uncertainly as she skimmed the information available.

 

“Correct,” replied Coulson with a sage nod, raising his hands to fold them on the table.

 

Tony reached out and slid the other towards him. “Why two?”  
  


Coulson shrugged. “Director Fury was looking to recruit Miss Lewis back when she was still in high school. He would have done so if she hadn't chosen to pursue political science rather than engineering following Miss Lyon's supposed death.”

 

“Lyon?” asked Tony, glancing up with a raised eyebrow at Coulson.

 

“Danya,” explained Jane, who's eyes were still glued to the file in front of her. “How much research did S.H.I.E.L.D do on Darcy?”

 

Reaching forward, Coulson pulled the file in front of Jane towards him and slid a piece of paper out from the very back, skimming the information there. “According to the information request, all information available on Miss Lewis, period, was collected.” He calmly slid the paper back into its rightful place. “Apparently that encompasses everything from her birth to the beginning of her college career, with tabs being kept from that point forward but no in-depth monitoring.”

 

Tony whistled and leaned back a little in his chair. “That's a lot of research. Fury must have really wanted to know everything.”

 

“At the time, I believe Director Fury was trying to assess her skills as an engineer,” explained Coulson, who slid another piece of paper out of the file in front of Jane, much to her protest, and lay it between the two genius'. “This was the event that caught S.H.I.E.L.D's attention initially.”

 

The slip of paper itself was nothing more than a news article printed from a small local paper. It presented a picture of a young Darcy standing beside an equally young Danya, both of whom were holding up a large 1st place trophy. They looked smug and appeared to be smirking at someone off-camera. Behind them, a piece of poster board titled “Bioengineering in Locomotion: Formulation of a New Means for Constructing Artificial Appendages” stood as the backdrop for the photo. Something that looked like it could be a mechanical hand sat on a table between them waving.

 

Jane picked up the article to read more while Tony reached for her file and fished out a thick package of papers bearing the same title. Slack jawed, he flipped through the paper in disbelief. Photographs, drawings, and design information were all present, though with enough details removed that no-one could recreate the design without the girls' assistance.

 

“This is amazing,” muttered Tony, eyes wide.

 

With a sigh, Jane set aside the paper and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “She helped create an advanced artificial limb and I had her working on general office duty. This is unbelievable.”

 

“Actually, our research indicates she had just as much of a hand in the project as Miss Lyon,” replied Coulson, sliding the article back into the file. “According to Miss Lyon, Miss Lewis did all of the data-exchange and structural work while she did anything involving fluids, which included determining a way to shield the electrical components from any liquids the body produces. Their research went even further to include proposals for surgical attachment and ideal wait-time before attachment occurred. For two individuals without a proper medical background, the whole project was advanced.”

 

“No shit,” muttered Tony. “Why the hell didn't my people know about this? We would have snatched them up in a heartbeat.”

 

Coulson smirked slightly over his cup. “We were sure to hide the story so you couldn't do exactly that. Besides, Stark Industries doesn't hire anyone without a college degree if memory serves.”

 

“We would have made an exception,” muttered Tony sulkily.

 

Jane let her head fall to her hand as she continued flipping through the file. “How did I miss the signs? How could I have been so oblivious to the fact that Darcy was this smart?”

 

Tony followed Jane's lead for a change and turned back to his own folder. “Simple, there were no signs.” When Jane lifted her head to look at him, he elaborated. “Darce didn't want people to know she was a genius, so she hid it behind what appeared to be stupid actions and words. Even I was shocked when she did her magic with the power system to get Thor here in one piece, but after I thought about it and actually _watched_ and _listened_ to what she said and did for a little while, it made sense.” Jane still looked skeptical. Tony just rolled his eyes. “Look, the kid's smart. Solutions come quickly to her and she learns fast. Next time someone's trying to solve a problem and she's in the room, watch what she does. For a few minutes, she'll be silent and look contemplative. Then, her eye's will light up and it'll be obvious she's had some sort of epiphany. That's her figuring out the answer to the problem. Once that's done, she'll start watching everyone else in the room and dropping random thoughts or comments that don't seem to connect unless you think about how the comments relate to the problem. She's all about guiding _other people_ to the solution so _she_ doesn't have to reveal herself. Subliminally too.”

 

Coulson smirked and nodded in approval. “Which is part of the reason S.H.I.E.L.D wanted her initially. Between her intelligence and her ability to think quickly while under pressure, Miss Lewis is a perfect candidate for S.H.I.E.L.D.”

 

Silence descended on the room again as both genius' returned their focus to the files. Coulson took that as his cue to exit. It didn't need to be said that the information in those folders needed to remain inside of S.H.I.E.L.D. No one would care if the rest of the Avengers or even Loki saw those files, and he could almost guarantee that the rest of the Avengers would see those files at some point. Foster and Stark could now satisfy their curiosity about their new-found kin and hopefully return to work shortly, which was all Coulson cared about.

 

And he would deny any accusations otherwise.


	4. Chapter 4

“What's up Darce?” asked Danya as she stepped into Darcy's office to find the dark-haired genius focused intently on her computer.

 

Darcy didn't even glance up from her task. “Trying to figure out how to get Mike here.”

 

Tony stuck his head into her office just as she said that. He looked as if he hadn't slept in the past 48 hours (which was distinctly possible). “Hey Darce, I need you to- who's Mike?”

 

“You still _have_ Mike?” questioned Danya as she stepped all the way into the office so Tony could get in as well.

 

Darcy finally looked away from her search for a moment to give Danya a look that clearly said she thought the other girl was crazy. “Of course I still have Mike. Why wouldn't I?”

 

Danya shrugged. “Because he isn't here. Which begs the question of where he is.”

 

“With Zar,” replied Darcy mildly. “I had to leave him back in Colorado when I transferred to New Mexico State and I didn't trust my parents to take proper care of him.”

 

“But you trusted _Zar_?” questioned Danya as she leaned over Darcy's shoulder to examine the same thing her friend was.

 

Darcy shrugged. “Zar loves Mike almost as much as I do. Who better to take care of him?”

 

“True,” sighed Danya. “But are you sure Zar will give him _back_?”

 

“Yeah,” assured Darcy. “He still thinks that robot that attacked in New Mexico back when Thor regained his godly powers was my creation.”

 

“Right,” snorted Danya. “What, was it a supped up version of D'ai?”

 

Darcy just nodded and went back to her search. Danya muttered something derisive and crude under her breath.

 

Tony, who had been waiting to be acknowledged throughout this whole thing, finally grew tired of them ignoring him. “Who's Mike? And why can't Loki just poof him over here?”

 

Both Darcy and Danya shot Tony the 'are you mad?' look that he was so used to getting from everyone but those two. Darcy pulled out her iPod look-alike and clicked a few buttons before holding it up for Tony to see. “That's Mike. I love Loki, but that doesn't mean I'd trust him with my car. That would be like you trusting Pepper to drive one of your classics.”

 

Tony's jaw dropped as he took in the picture. “That's a Tesla. How the hell could you afford a Tesla?”

 

Darcy snorted. “Please, I _built_ that car myself. I had to pretty much rebuild the entire thing from the ground up except the frame which could have come from a Tesla car, but I wouldn't know because when I got it, it was literally a frame.”

 

“You built that?” asked Tony, still in shock.

 

“Yep,” confirmed Darcy cheerfully.

 

Danya pointed at something back on the computer screen. “What about these guys Darce? They look pretty good.”

 

Darcy turned and pulled up the transport company that Danya had pointed at. “Huh, maybe. It does say they specialize in classic cars but I was hoping that I could get D'ai sent out here too and I don't think these guys would be willing to transport D'ai.”

 

“I'm not sure anyone's going to be willing to transport D'ai,” pointed out Danya.

 

“Uh, who's D'ai?” asked Tony uneasily.

 

“My robotic dog,” replied Darcy. “He's with Zar and Mike.”

 

“Uh-huh, and where would that be?”

 

“Near Boulder, Colorado,” replied Danya as she glanced at Tony suspiciously. “Why?”

 

Tony shrugged. “Well, I could have my guys transfer them out here.”

 

Darcy turned back to Tony, eyebrow raised. “At what cost?”

 

“No cost,” replied Tony easily. “You're a smart kid who's been a world of help. I just figured that I should offer you something in return.”

 

Both of Darcy's eyebrows went up. “So, out of the goodness of your heart, you're offering to transport my car _and_ my robot dog out to New York from Colorado, free of charge?”

 

Tony nodded. “It's not that hard to transport a car and a dog. Not like it's a house or anything. Plus, consider this, perhaps, incentive to consider the offer I want to make you?”

 

Darcy and Danya exchanged uncertain looks before Darcy focused completely on Tony. “What kind of an offer?”

 

“I want you to transfer to the engineering division,” explained Tony. “Basically, you'd still work for S.H.I.E.L.D, but you'd have access to Stark Industry tools, tech, even your own workshop.”

 

Danya let out a low whistle. “Wow, that's some offer.”

 

“What's the catch?” asked Darcy suspiciously. “Stark Industries gets all patents?”

 

Tony scoffed. “Hardly. The trade off is that you help me out when I need it and basically play 'babysitter' when Coulson or Pep's won't let me work alone.”

 

“Which is never.”

 

“Pretty much,” admitted Tony. “But you're workshop would be connected to mine so you can 'monitor' me while doing your own thing _and_ there will be a door so you can work in peace.”

 

Darcy nodded slowly. “Basically, you're bribing me with fancy tools and machinery into pretending to be your babysitter?”

 

“More or less,” confirmed Tony. “Though you'll have your own contracts to complete under Stark Industries, but patents will be in your name.”

 

Danya leaned back and started ticking points off on her fingers. “Basically, Darcy gets modern tools and a workspace, plus a salary and patents to whatever she builds either on her own or under contract. Stark Industries, in return, gets a 'babysitter' for their genius and the initial payment from any completed contracts. Sound about right?”

 

“Yeah, though Darcy will get a percentage of the payment for completed contracts,” added Tony. “Otherwise, yeah that about sums it up.”

 

“Nice,” muttered Danya. “Wish I had gotten a deal like that with S.H.I.E.L.D.”

 

Darcy chuckled. “Though you do have publication rights now.”

 

“True,” agreed Danya.

 

“Well Darce, what do you think?” asked Tony hopefully. He even threw in the puppy-dog eyes that he could use to sometimes get Pepper to do what he wanted. Well, get her to _let_ him do what he wanted was more like it.

 

Darcy seemed to consider some things in her head before shrugging. “Sounds good to me. But what about S.H.I.E.L.D? They aren't going to just let me go.”

 

Tony grinned manically. “That's the beauty of this all: because Stark Industries and S.H.I.E.L.D work closely together, it's just a transfer. Hell, Fury already approved it if I could get you to agree.”

 

“Not a surprise,” muttered Danya. “I'm pretty sure Loki scared him with that whole 'you just single-handedly destroyed the world, congratulations' line.”

 

“Probably,” agreed Darcy as she held out her hand to Tony. “Alright, it's a deal.”

 

When Tony took her hand, he couldn't have imagined the insanity that would follow her transfer. Of course, when one hires a woman who's referred to by the _God_ of Mischief as the Goddess of Mischief, chaos should be expected.

 

* * *

 

Tony sighed as he looked around the workshop adjoined to his own. He'd given Darcy access before her transfer papers were finished and she set up everything the way she wanted it that first day. Some of her own tools and devices had made their way into the space on the second day and a cot appeared on the third. Well, Tony suspected Loki had brought in the cot given it's size but that was a whole different discussion.

 

Sighing, the billionaire genius picked up one of the tools that wasn't his: an old screwdriver that had probably seen better days and that he was pretty sure didn't get used anymore based on the worn tip. It was one of the tools Darcy had brought in personally and, when he'd asked about it, she said it had sentimental value. Across the room, D'ai whimpered from where he lay on the cot.

 

“Yeah boy, I miss her too,” admitted Tony as he turned the screwdriver slowly in his hand.

 

“Tony?” He looked up at Pepper's voice, smiling slightly and admiring her as she picked her way gingerly over the debris-strewn floor. Darcy's workshop looked at lot like Tony's own in so many ways it almost hurt. “Tony, what are you doing in here?”

 

Tony shrugged and set the screwdriver back where he'd found it. “Just thinking, Pep.”

 

Pepper rolled her eyes and affectionately stroked Tony's hair. “She will be back you know. Just give her a little time.”

 

“I know Pep,” muttered Tony as he lay his head against her chest. “But I can't help it. It hurts knowing that I wasn't there for so long, finding myself wishing I had been there even to help raise her. Or better yet, raising her myself.”

 

“Oh Tony,” murmured Pepper. “Darcy is having just as much trouble with this as you are.”

 

Tony looked up at his once-assistant, now partner with hopeful eyes. “You think?”

 

“Tony, based on the scant tales I've heard from Loki and Darcy, she would have preferred being raised by you,” assured Pepper softly. “But that wasn't what happened. Instead, she got adopted by a family that loved her, even if they tried too hard to protect her from things that she could handle.”

 

“Do you think she'll let me start being her dad now?” asked Tony quietly.

 

Pepper nodded gently. “I think she already has Tony.”

 

Tony smiled a little and kissed her quickly. “Thanks Pep, you're the best.”

 

“Anytime Tony,” assured Pepper with a smile. “Anytime.”


	5. Jane Makes a Phone Call

Jane stared blankly at the computer screen in front of her, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't concentrate. It wasn't something fun like Thor distracting her either; it was this mess with Darcy. She still couldn't believe her aunt and uncle would just _give up_ their granddaughter. Especially without Tony's express permission. Why not try to find her father at least? Why give her up at all?

 

“Your mind is racing, my love,” remarked Thor, his large hands coming to rest on her shoulders. Gentle as could be, he lightly pressed against her skin in a soothing motion that resembled a massage.

 

Immediately, some of the tension eased from Jane's shoulders, though not all of it. It wouldn't all dissipate until she had answers. She just wasn't sure how to approach this topic. It wasn't like she wanted to call up her mother and just tell her she'd found her long-lost cousin. For one thing, she wasn't sure how Darcy would feel about Jane telling anyone in her family she'd found her cousin. For another, she didn't want to get Tony in trouble.

 

“Beautiful Jane, speak your mind,” insisted Thor, his deep voice a gentle rumble she could feel as much as she could hear it. She wanted to just wrap herself in that voice and forget any of this was happening.

 

Tipping her head back against his chest, she blinked up at the god she'd some how gotten lucky enough to snag. This man who was willing to work so hard to protect her, who clearly cared for her. Loved her. She could talk to him.

 

Sighing, she reached up and ran a hand over his bearded cheek and chin. “It's Darcy.”

 

“You are concerned for her?” questioned Thor gently. “I can assure you, my brother will allow no harm to befall her.”

 

“I know,” assured Jane. “He doesn't exactly hide the fact that he's completely in love with her. Allowing someone to threaten her is out of the question for him.”

 

“Then what plagues your mind?” asked Thor, his arms sliding down to wrap around her waist. “What is the problem that is weighing so heavily upon you.”

 

“I'm thinking about calling my mom and asking about Darcy's adoption,” admitted Jane quietly, her fingers sliding down one of Thor's arms to rest over his large hands. “But I just....I don't want to upset Darcy any more than she already is and I'm afraid if I call my mom and ask, she'll know something is wrong.”

 

Nodding slowly, Thor pressed a kiss to Jane's temple. “I believe that you must do what you believe to be right. You are very wise, my dear Jane. If there is one who can ask the questions that must be asked, it is you.”

 

“Thank you, Thor,” whispered Jane softly before she leaned up and kissed him slowly, her decision made.

 

\------------------------------------

 

“Hello?”

 

The familiar voice of Jane's mother, Madison Foster, echoed clearly through the line. Even though Jane still felt nervous about this whole matter, hearing her mother's familiar voice soothed part of her mind regardless. “Hello, Mom?”

 

“Jane!” greeted Madison Foster happily. “How are you doing, sweetheart?”

 

Jane shrugged a little as she stared out the window of the mansion's living room. “I've been better. This week has been a little rough for everyone.”

 

“I'm sorry, Jane,” apologized Madison gently. “Do you want to talk about it?”

 

Wishing she'd allowed Thor to stay with her while she made this call, Jane closed her eyes and spoke. “No, not really. I actually called because I wanted to ask you about something.”

 

“Ask away, Jane,” replied Madison. “You know you can ask me about anything.”

 

Nodding, even though her mother couldn't see it, Jane took a deep, fortifying breath. “What happened to Nancy's baby?”

 

Her question was met with silence from Madison. Though Jane imagined a lot of the silence was shock, she thought there was some guilt mixed in, too. They never talked about Nancy, ever. Mostly because something about Nancy's death created an elephant in the room.

 

Madison sighed heavily over the ear piece before she spoke again. “Why are you asking?”

 

“I can't say,” replied Jane. “But I need to know, what happened to her baby?”

 

“Jerry and Melody gave her up,” stated Madison with a sigh.

 

“They just gave her away without even asking if anyone else in the family would take her?” growled Jane. “I know Aunt Sofia would have raised her.”

 

“No one liked what they did, Jane,” cut in Madison. “We all thought they should have kept the child themselves or allowed someone else in the family to raise her, but they just signed the adoption papers at the hospital the same day Nancy died and never looked back. No one was happy with what they did, but we can't undo the past.”

 

Dropping onto a sofa, Jane groaned. “Why did they give her up? I don't understand.”

 

“They saw her as a reminder of their daughter,” explained Madison. “They wanted Nancy to abort from the beginning but she refused. Instead, she had the baby and died doing so. She never named the father either, so it wasn't like they could give her to her father.”

 

“Tony Stark,” muttered Jane with a sigh. She hadn't been planning to tell her mom about Darcy, but knowing that only her aunt and uncle had been involved in giving Darcy changed things. Besides, her mother barely spoke to the rest of the family, so it was possible wouldn't say a word about this to anyone.

 

“What about Tony Stark?” asked Madison. Jane could hear the furrowing of her mother's brow in her voice.

 

“Tony Stark is her father,” replied Jane quietly, pulling her knees up to her chin. “Her name's Darcy Lewis, formerly Darcy Finche.”

 

“Darcy Lewis...you're intern?” questioned Madison, shock infusing her voice. “Are you sure, Jane?”

 

“Yeah,” confirmed Jane. “Our place of work ran a DNA test for security reasons. She came up as a match to Tony Stark and myself.”

 

For a moment, there was silence over the phone line. Then, a soft sob. “What is she like?”

 

“She's amazing,” replied Jane quietly. “You've heard me talk about Darcy. She's a genius who can build anything. She's got an amazing boyfriend who loves her, a best friend she'd do anything for, and a slew of other people who care for her and would protect her from anything. Her research is light-years ahead of what we have and with Stark Industries on her side, she'll help break us all into the next generation of technology.”

 

“Is she nice?” asked Madison, her voice stronger now.

 

“When she wants to be,” replied Jane with a laugh. “I've seen her get revenge on people who've made the mistake of underestimating her and I've seen her challenge people most sane humans wouldn't dream of clashing with.”

 

“She's strong, stubborn,” muttered Madison, but there was a smile in her voice. “Just like all Foster's are.”

 

“With Stark's genius and aptitude for all things mechanical,” agreed Jane.

 

“What- what does she look like?” asked Madison.

 

Jane shrugged a little, trying to think of the best way to describe Darcy. Then, she got a better idea. “I can send you a picture when we're off the phone. But mom, you can't tell anyone about her.”

 

“But Jane, your aunts and uncles, they'll want know!” objected Madison. “They're her _family_ -”

 

“No,” cut in Jane firmly. “Mom, as far as she's concerned, we're a bunch of people who didn't want her and, even if that isn't true of everyone, her own grandparents gave her up without a second thought. Right now, we need to give Tony a chance to get to know her and she'll resist if our family gets involved.”

 

“She's just as much our family as she is his,” argued Madison. “Why should he get preferential access to her?”

 

“Because she's his daughter,” replied Jane with a bit of a growl. “She's the daughter he never got to know because _our_ family gave her away before he could be informed. Because _our_ family _illegally put her up for adoption_. _Our_ family abandoned her, he never knew she existed. _He_ deserves the chance to get to know her. We had the chance and blew it. We could have taken the matter to court, we could have claimed custody, but no one did. We abandoned her to the system, even if it was unwillingly, but he never even got the chance.” She paused to take a deep breath then, the rage she'd felt growing since she'd gotten the news ebbing from her system like the water before a tsunami. When she felt calmer, she dared to speak again. “This is his second chance and I won't let anyone screw him out of that. You didn't see the look on his face when he found out he had a child. Guilt, love, disbelief, awe... it was everything a father should feel for his child. He _wants_ to be her dad. He'd more or less adopted her unofficially before he found out. But she's resisting accepting everything because she was lied to by her adoptive parents. And right now, I'd rather see her come to trust Tony than push her to accept all of her family at once. Her father should get his chance first.”

 

A heavy sigh carried over the line, tears laced through the shuttering breath. “Alright, Jane. I understand and I won't tell anyone. But, could you do me a favor in return? Could you please keep me up-to-date on what she's doing? Send me pictures, newspaper articles, anything you can? I wanted to adopt her. I would have if Jerry had been from my side of the family. But your father didn't want to get involved and I wasn't going to push him to get involved if he didn't feel it was his right.”

 

“Alright,” agreed Jane quietly. “I'll do what I can. Most of what she's doing now is classified though, so I won't make any guarantees.”

 

“That's fine,” assured Madison. “Just something, whatever you can manage.”

 

“Right,” sighed Jane heavily. Glancing up, she spotted the crack in the door immediately and knew that Thor had been listening in on the whole conversation. Smiling slightly over his concern, she shifted the phone and quietly started towards the door. “Anyway mom, I need to go. I'll call you later when I get the chance and we can talk more.”

 

“That sounds good,” agreed Madison. “I love you, Jane.”

 

“Love you too, mom,” returned Jane. “Have a good day.”

 

“You too.” The click of the phone line cutting off told Jane her mom had disconnected the call. Though normally that would concern Jane, as she was always the one to hang up, she pushed any concerns about why her mom had hung up from her mind. Her mother was bound to be emotional after that particular call.

 

Setting her own phone carefully on the first flat surface she could find, Jane slipped up to the cracked open door. Carefully remaining out of sight, Jane touched the doorknob for a moment before rapidly pulling the door open and sending Thor tumbling into the room. The sight of the god of thunder laying on the floor looking up at her brought a soft smile to Jane's lips. “Enjoying the view?”

 

Thor's brow furrowed as he stared up at Jane, clearly confused. “I do not understand this phrase. What view am I supposedly enjoying?”

 

One of Jane's eyebrows rose in disbelief. “Okay, I'll forgive you for that comment this time, but you might want to ask Tony what that means.” Smiling down at Thor, she offered him one of her hands.

 

He waved it off easily though, rolling to his feet and offering Jane a worried look. “Are you well, my Jane?”

 

“I'll be alright,” replied Jane, one of her hands rising to rub at the bridge of her nose. “I could really use a hug and some comfort right now though.”

 

Smiling softly, Thor pulled Jane into his arms for a careful hug. “I can assist you with both.”

 

“Good,” murmured Jane with a content sigh, some of the tension already easing from her shoulders. “I was hoping you would say that.”

**Author's Note:**

> Coulson is really optimistic in that last line. Poor man.


End file.
